His broad shoulders went rigid as he stopped walking midstep. Without looking back at her, he drew a deep breath before answering. “Martin’s grandson died five weeks ago in a helicopter crash. Since I’m the only relative he had left, the cabin is mine now.”
Then he disappeared into a room and slammed the door shut behind him.
3
The sun had just started to peek over the mountain ridge to the east when Eli woke up. He didn’t hear any noise coming from down the hall, so maybe his unexpected and unwanted guest was still asleep. He was in no hurry to face Safara again, at least not until he could figure out a better explanation about how he’d come to be living in Martin’s cabin.
Damn, the woman had played that whole situation perfectly last night. Her last question had been a well-placed verbal sniper shot, flying in out of nowhere to almost knock Eli to his knees. It had taken every bit of self-control he had not to blurt out the truth. Maybe she hadn’t heard about his supposed death before he answered her, but he couldn’t count on it. The last thing he wanted was for the authorities to start poking their noses around in his private business.
On his few trips down below to buy supplies, he’d planned all along to claim he was a distant relative of Martin’s, the last member of a family that had never been all that large to begin with. Until last night, no one had been curious enough to even bother asking his name, much less where he came from. Obviously he’d gotten a bit too complacent, but then he’d never planned on ending up with a strange woman sleeping on his couch, especially such a beautiful one.
And she was that. Even with her dark hair wet and straggling down around her shoulders and her clothes all muddy, Safara Dennell was a head turner. Something about her pale ivory skin and forthright gaze. She was built along lean lines but with long legs and all the right curves. Not that he had any business thinking that way. He couldn’t risk tangling his life up with anyone else’s right now, especially someone in law enforcement.
So if she asked again, he’d make it clear to her that he was Eli D. Jervain, Martin’s great-nephew, and hope that she would accept his explanation at face value. At least his grandfather had had the foresight to tell his attorney to put Eli’s birth name on the paperwork when he’d transferred the deed to him after Martin’s death. At the time, Eli had been mad about it, figuring he’d have to go to court or something to have it redone in his legal last name of Yates.
“Eli? Are you awake?”
“Yeah, give me a minute and I’ll be right there.”
He’d slept in flannel pajama pants in case Safara had needed him during the night. He normally only wore boxers or nothing at all. Somehow he doubted she would’ve appreciated him showing up to help her to the bathroom wearing nothing but a smile.
After putting on a clean T-shirt, he made a quick stop in the bathroom before joining Safara in the living room. To his surprise, the sofa was empty, and the blanket he’d given her to use was neatly folded on the coffee table. The woman herself was in the kitchen area, standing on one foot as she started a pot of coffee.
She smiled at him over her shoulder. “I hope you don’t mind me making myself at home, but I don’t function well until I’ve had my first shot of caffeine.”
“No problem.” He pulled a chair out for her at the table. “But why don’t you sit down before you fall down? I promise to pour you a cup of caffeine as soon as it’s ready.”
He supported her arm while she hobbled to the chair. “I hope bacon and eggs sounds good to you. That’s about all I have in the way of breakfast food.”
“Anything is fine, but I don’t want to be any trouble.”
She’d already been that, and his gut told him that she would continue to be if he wasn’t careful. Throwing strips of bacon into Martin’s old cast-iron skillet, Eli made a mental list of oddities that still bothered him about last night’s events, questions he would never ask for fear she’d turn the tables on him and start asking a few more of her own.
Starting with what Safara had been doing out in the woods in the first place. If she’d been there on official business, he had to figure she would’ve simply said so. It seemed unlikely that she’d hiked her ass up the mountainside that late at night just for her health. So had she been there to meet up with that weird guy for some reason? If that was the case, deputy or not, it was a pretty stupid thing to do.
There was also something hinky about the way she’d reacted when he’d brought up the subject of talking to the police about what had happened. Yeah, so she was a deputy. Big deal. That didn’t give her a free pass on having to make a formal report, or at least it shouldn’t. From what he’d seen over the years, cops didn’t react well to an attack on a fellow officer, making it more likely they would demand to know every damn detail so they could go after the guy.
Of course, who was he to point fingers at people for not wanting to tell the powers that be the truth about what happened? It wasn’t like he’d stuck around to talk to all the investigators swooping in to determine what had caused the helicopter to crash. He’d followed the story in the papers and online, but it had been barely a blip on the radar. After a few mentions, the entire incident disappeared from sight almost overnight. That was good for his personal situation, but his friends hadn’t deserved to be forgotten that quickly.
Back to last night. Safara also hadn’t been totally freaked by two guys fighting with swords instead of guns or even regular knives. She had no way of knowing that Eli had come charging to her rescue with the only kind of weapon he had immediately at hand. That other guy, though, had fought with that curved blade with a deadly skill that spoke of lots of experience. Hell, he’d even been wearing a scabbard for it. Who did something like that?
Safara jarred him out of his reverie by tugging on his sleeve. “Hey, Eli, I think the coffee is done.”
And so was the bacon. He hoped she liked it extra crispy. How long had he been lost in thought this time? That had been happening to him ever since the crash. It was like he got caught up in endless loops of questions and memories. Sometimes he lost a few seconds, sometimes far more. He grabbed a pair of mugs down off the shelf and filled them with coffee. “Do you take cream or sugar?”
“Nope, black.”
Safara accepted the mug, her expression almost worshipful as she took the first sip. “I haven’t tried this particular blend of coffee before, but I’ll definitely be adding it to my list of favorites.”
It had actually been Martin who’d bought the beans. Eli had found them when he’d moved in. God knows how long they’d been in the freezer. “How do you like your eggs?”
“Scrambled is fine.”
He put four slices of bread in the toaster and then cracked half a dozen eggs into a bowl. After beating them with a fork, he dumped them into the hot skillet. The eggs were finished just as the toast popped up. He dished it all up and set a plate in front of Safara before taking his own seat.
“This is delicious. I usually make do with cold cereal in the mornings.” She smiled at him from across the table. “Thanks again for everything you’ve done.”
He managed a small nod. “Anyone would’ve done the same.”
She didn’t look convinced of that fact. “Look, I’ve already intruded enough on your time. I hope driving me back down the mountain this morning doesn’t interfere with any plans you might’ve had.”
“No plans, but we should get moving.”
When Safara picked up her dishes, evidently planning to hobble as far as the sink with them, he shook his head. “Just leave them on the table. I’ll take care of them later.”
The stubborn woman ignored him and headed for the sink anyway. He just rolled his eyes and let her do it, but stayed close enough to intervene if she lost her balance. “I ran your clothes through the laundry last night. They’re probably wrinkled, but at least they’re clean.”
When she started to speak, he cut her off. “No more thanks necessary. It’s not like I had to make any special ef
fort or anything. My clothes were wet and muddy, too, so I just threw yours in with mine.”
He was verging on being rude, but he needed to put some distance between the two of them. Without giving her a chance to argue, he picked Safara up and hauled her down the hall to the bathroom. He set her back down and stepped away to give her room to maneuver. “Wait here a second and I’ll get your clothes. As soon as you’re dressed, we’ll head for town.”
But before he did that, he wanted to ask one question. He leaned his shoulder back against the wall. “I never thought to ask. Where did you leave your ATV parked?”
Safara frowned and blinked her eyes a couple of times. “What makes you think I drove an ATV?”
The corner of his mouth quirked up in a half smile. “If you’d driven a regular car, you would’ve had to leave it parked on the side of road someplace down below, which would’ve left you a hell of a hike up to where I found you. That leaves either an ATV or a dirt bike. My gut says it was an ATV.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and watched her. “Am I wrong?”
“No.”
The single word was said grudgingly. She clearly didn’t want to say anything more on the subject, but she finally added, “It’s parked in a clearing about a quarter mile south of where you found me. It’s safe right where it is for now. My father will drive me back up to retrieve it when he has time.”
She looked as if she were bracing herself for further interrogation, but he walked away. The less he knew about why she’d been on the mountain, the better. Besides, if he didn’t press her for answers, maybe she would afford him the same courtesy.
A few seconds later, he handed Safara her clothes and disappeared into his bedroom to get dressed. The sooner he was shed of her company, the better.
SAFARA BRACED HERSELF as Eli drove down the mountain with reckless abandon. His truck was an older model equipped with four-wheel drive, which made it well suited for traveling the narrow dirt road. That didn’t mean she didn’t feel every rut, rock, and bump that he hit. Ordinarily, his driving wouldn’t have bothered her, but her ankle still ached like crazy and all this jolting wasn’t helping.
They were almost to the paved road that would take them the rest of the way into Ridgewick, the nearby town where she lived. It would be good to get home, but the same couldn’t be said about reporting to headquarters. Telling her father everything that happened last night was not going to be any fun at all. At least she could count on him to hold both his tongue and his temper until the two of them were alone. No way he’d risk revealing any of their secrets in front of a total stranger. Regardless, it would be interesting to see how her father reacted to Eli.
Would he take one look at him and think Paladin like she had? She still had her suspicions about Eli’s true nature despite his claims to have no idea what she was talking about. Maybe her father would tell her she was imagining things, but then his first glimpse of Eli wouldn’t be of him charging through the forest with a broadsword in hand. The image still had the power to make her shiver even if not all of her reaction was due to fear.
No, honesty made her admit that there was also a hefty dose of feminine admiration of an alpha male in his prime in the mix. In fact, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d reacted so strongly to any man. Maybe never. She was almost hyperaware of his well-defined muscles, especially the way his powerful shoulders took up way too much room in the cab of the truck. And then there were those gorgeous green eyes that held intriguing hints of dark secrets. She also liked the way his rare smiles softened the hard edges of his face and made him look far more approachable. Too bad he was off-limits for her.
What was he thinking about so hard that had him frowning like that? Eli hadn’t said more than a handful of words since he’d insisted on carrying her out to his vehicle, but he’d glanced in her direction three times in as many minutes.
If he didn’t spit out whatever was bothering him soon, she would have to find a way to drag it out of him. She was about to do just that when he finally spoke up. “Were you one of the cops who investigated Martin’s death?”
“No, I wasn’t involved. Why do you ask?”
“At the time, Martin’s grandson was told the old man had been found dead from multiple lacerations somewhere in the mountains. They were investigating, and the last word was that they had no suspects or explanation for why he was out there in the first place. They did say that the local medical examiner and at least one of the cops who found him thought it might’ve been a bear or cougar attack, but the jury was still out on that. I was just wondering how I would go about finding out what they finally decided. It won’t change anything, of course. I just wondered what actually happened.”
His words set off major alarms in her head. If she was reading between the lines correctly, there was a good chance old Martin had been killed by an Other. That’s what the Paladins called anyone from Kalithia who crossed over into this world out of their head with the light disease. Just as with Tiel, the illness drove its victims crazy with the need to kill anyone who crossed their path. Paladins spent their entire lives guarding the most active stretches of the barrier, either killing the Others or shoving them back into their own world.
She had to tell Eli something. “Since his body was found outside of the city limits, it would’ve been the county sheriff’s department that responded.”
Eli frowned. “So does that mean neither you nor your father would have access to their files?”
“We have a good relationship with the guys who patrol this area. They might let us have a peek at their report if you want me to ask them.”
They’d reached the end of the dirt road. He remained silent as he checked for oncoming traffic before pulling out onto the two-lane highway. Once they were under way again, he glanced at her.
“Thanks for offering, but don’t bother. I was just curious.”
She did her best to match his casual attitude. “Let me know if you change your mind.”
“I will.”
Three miles later, they reached the first scattering of houses on the outskirts of Ridgewick. Eli slowed down to the posted speed limit. “The police station is in the same building as the mayor’s office, isn’t it? That brick building about three blocks east of the stop sign in the middle of town?”
She couldn’t help but grin. Everybody she knew gave directions based on the only four-way stop in the entire town of Ridgewick. “Yep, the door is in the rear of the building, so you’ll want to drive around back.”
Her father was just getting out of his cruiser when they pulled into the parking lot. He frowned big-time the second he spotted her riding shotgun in Eli’s truck. Rather than waiting for Safara to come to him, he crossed the parking lot to open her door for her. “Where the hell have you been? And why haven’t you been answering your phone?”
“Hello to you, too, Dad. And can’t we wait until we’re inside before you start the inquisition?”
She slid out of the seat, moving slowly as she tried putting weight on her foot. When she winced, her dad grabbed her arm to support her. “What happened? Are you all right?”
“I’m fine except for a sprained ankle. I’ll explain everything once I get inside and off my feet. A big cup of coffee and a couple of aspirin wouldn’t hurt, either.”
By that point, Eli had joined them on her side of the truck, but introductions could wait a little longer. Once again, she tried walking on her own. After only two halting steps, a muttered curse word and something about God saving Eli from stubborn women served as her only warning before a pair of strong arms swung her up off the ground. The shocked expression on her father’s face was priceless, but at least he had the good sense to go with the flow for the moment. He trotted ahead to the door to the police station and held it opened while Eli carried her inside.
She pointed toward her desk in the corner. Eli plopped her down on the chair and then stepped back out of the way. It was testament to how well her father knew her
that he had yet to ask any of the questions that had to be clogging up his brain right about now. Instead, he’d headed directly into the break room.
She waited until he was out of hearing before she whispered, “Brace yourself, big guy. I’m guessing Dad is not in the best of moods today.”
The words were barely out of her mouth when the man in question came marching back with three mugs of steaming hot coffee. He set them down on her desk with a little more force than absolutely necessary and then tossed her a bottle of aspirin.
“Okay, Daughter. You’re sitting down. You’ve got your coffee and pain meds. Now talk, starting with telling me who the hell this guy is.”
She smiled up at Eli. “And so it begins.”
To her surprise, he winked at her before he stuck his hand out toward her father. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Dennell. I’m the man your daughter spent the night with.”
TWO HOURS LATER, Eli was still chuckling about Safara’s outrage over the way he’d introduced himself to her father. Chief Dennell hadn’t been any happier about it than his daughter was, but eventually he’d introduced himself properly as Eli Jervain, and the discussion had gotten back on track. Not that Eli was particularly satisfied with what he’d learned.
Or actually, hadn’t learned. He still didn’t know why Safara had been up on the mountain in the first place. He also suspected both Dennells knew far more about her attacker than they let on. It was hard to tell if they’d closed ranks because it involved an open investigation or if they were hiding something far more sinister. Either way, he’d clearly been an outsider, one they weren’t ready to trust with any secrets. He understood how they felt. After all, he hadn’t exactly rushed to share his own story with them.
For now, all he could think about was getting back to the cabin and kicking back with a couple of beers. But as he rounded the last curve in the narrow road that dead-ended at the cabin, his carefully made plans blew up in his face.
In Darkness Transformed Page 3